1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to electronic information surveillance and security systems and, more specifically, to a Method and Apparatus for Detecting the Presence and Locations of Radio Controlled Improvised Explosive Devices in Real Time.
2. Description of Related Art
According to public press releases, recent asymmetrical warfare theaters have seen a dramatic increase in the use of radio controlled improvised explosive devices (commonly known and hereinafter referred to as “RCIED's”) by insurgents and other hostile militants. The insurgents have been utilizing various types of RCIED's to fight guerilla warfare because they are highly effective, despite their low cost and low-tech design. These weapons are proving to be quite effective against an occupying force that must use the established public roadways as transfer routes for personnel, equipment, and other supplies. Typically, these RCIED's are hidden along or underneath roadways and streets; when a convoy or other important vehicular target approaches within striking distance of the RCIED(s), the insurgents detonate them. Detonation is initiated from a safe distance within radio signal range, causing significant damage and casualties to the targets but not to the initiators. This is proving to be a serious problem for U.S. and Coalition forces and must be addressed with a new type of real time detection technology.
What is needed is a device and method that provides the ability to “sweep” through roadways and streets, ahead of a convoy (for example), in a clandestine manner.
The requirement for a clandestine and disguised packaging of the system is important due to the fact that insurgents must not know that the friendly forces have the technology to detect and map out the insurgents' RCIED weapons after they are hidden on streets.
In addition to being applicable for military tactical operations, such a technology would be extremely useful to the Department of Homeland Security, the Secret Service, the Central Intelligence Agency, etc. Through use of such a system, the local roadways and streets traveled by leaders and VIP's can be swept of any possible RCIED's that had recently placed there by terrorist groups.
In order to feasibly detect RCIED leakages (that can be radiating on any frequency) as efficiently as possible, a System that has the following attributes is needed: 1) The abilities stated in the aforementioned U.S. patent application to do extremely fast wideband scanning for signal energy across wide ranges of the RF spectrum; 2) The real-time ability to do comparisons between received leakage signals and the received ambient RF environment; 3) The real-time ability to mark and keep track of the relative locations where each of RF spectrum signal emanated; 4) The real-time ability provide operators with alarms and indications that a possible RCIED has been detected its approximate location; 5) The ability to pick up and use the vehicle's distance traveled from measurement to measurement to account for speed variances; and 6) The ability to be installed in a low profile, clandestine manner on a mobile platform such as a car or truck so as not to alert insurgents of its existence.